When Should I Use Lithium Batteries?
Marine
- Sponsor
- OPTIMA Batteries
- Location
- Glendale, WI
Lithium batteries for boats are the latest and greatest technology, but are they right for you and your boating application? Most lithium battery brands will tell you they are always right for your boat, because that's the only option they offer and when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. OPTIMA Batteries wants your business, but only when it makes sense for you.
Quality lithium batteries are typically priced significantly higher than AGM batteries and quality AGM batteries are typically priced significantly higher than flooded lead-acid batteries, so it makes sense to assess your usage and determine which technology makes the most sense for you and your boat. Along with their premium price, lithium batteries offer a lot of positive features over the other technologies, but not all of that is relevant to every boater. Some examples of enhanced lithium features include more usable capacity, more cycle life, lighter weight and faster recharging time between cycles.
However, if you're on a liveaboard motor cruiser, lighter weight might not be a big selling point versus someone with a kayak, while more usable capacity could be very important. One of the biggest unmentioned selling points and most-common failure modes for flooded or AGM batteries is low voltage protection against deep discharges. Some lithium batteries, including OPTIMA ORANGETOP lithium batteries will automatically turn off and prevent the type of deep discharge scenarios that cause sulfation and shorten the lifespan of lead-acid batteries. Let's take a look at each of these three technologies and when they might make the most sense for you and your boat:
The Case for Flooded Lead-Acid Batteries
We'll be the first to tell you if your boat only cost $500, the most affordable flooded-lead-acid batteries you can find are probably the right choice. The same would be true if you were preparing your boat for sale. You could spend the extra money to outfit it with AGM or lithium batteries, but you probably wouldn't recoup that cost when you sell the boat. In the lithium battery space, a lot of attention seems to be focused on battery cycle life, but is that a factor that is relevant for your boat and how you use it? If you only take your boat out a few times a year and don't discharge your batteries a lot when you do boat, flooded lead-acid batteries may make the most sense.
The Case for AGM Batteries
The more you use your boat and the more deeply you cycle your batteries, the more sense AGM batteries, like OPTIMA's BLUETOP Batteries, will make. If you use your boat regularly and are replacing your flooded lead-acid batteries every year or perhaps more often, AGM batteries like the BLUETOP may make a lot of sense. OPTIMA advertises that our BLUETOP AGM batteries will last up to three times as long as a flooded lead-acid battery and you won't be spending three times as much to buy them. When you run the numbers for your boat, it should become obvious when you'll save money by upgrading to an AGM battery that lasts longer. AGM and lithium batteries will also offer higher voltage over the discharge range, which can help sensitive electronics function better, even at a lower state of charge.
The Case for Lithium Batteries
We've watched as some lithium battery brands have promoted cycle life measured well into the thousands of cycles, some even claiming their batteries will deliver "up to 15,000 deep cycles." It almost seems as if promoting cycle life is the new "Cold Cranking Amps" marketing tool for lithium batteries, where everyone wants to promote a bigger number, believing bigger is always better. Just running simple numbers, if you cycle your lithium battery every day, it will take you more than 41 years to reach 15,000 cycles. Do you even plan on keeping your boat for 41 years, let alone being on it every day and cycling the battery that much?
What many of these lithium brands may not tell you (or they may not even know) is that lithium batteries do degrade over time, so it's highly unlikely a lithium battery will last long enough to deliver a cycle every day for 41 straight years. The truth is a lithium battery may not even last half that long and whenever a "15,000 deep cycle" lithium battery does stop working, it is unlikely the claimed cycle life will have been exhausted. However, the warranty coverage will likely be exhausted, because while some brands make those cycle life claims, their warranty terms are generally tied to a timeframe, which quickly moves into pro-ration, meaning you will be paying the battery company to replace your battery (OPTIMA's lithium warranty is five years, free replacement).
So does a lithium battery make sense for anyone? Absolutely! OPTIMA's sponsored tournament anglers and professional fishing guides may be on the water 200 days or more per year, but even they are unlikely to ever reach 15,000 deep cycles with their batteries. While they may not reach that mark, they are likely to cycle their batteries more deeply and well beyond the lifespan of AGM batteries within a few years time. The same could be true for people who live aboard their boats and spend much of the year at sea or not connected to shore power. For people in those situations, upgrading to lithium batteries makes a lot of sense.
Lithium batteries like OPTIMA's ORANGETOP batteries also offer features not typically found in AGM or flooded lead-acid batteries, like NMEA 2000 connectivity, the low voltage protection we previously mentioned, a BlueTooth app that provides battery and charging information on your phone, interbattery communication, integrated cell heaters and more. We can alert you to these features and benefits, but only you can decide if they are an important purchase consideration.
Conclusion
Before you spend the most or the least amount of money possible on batteries for your boat, make sure you identify how you expect to use them and choose the technology that makes the most sense for you! Whatever battery technology you do choose, make sure you keep those batteries properly maintained with a quality battery maintenance device to maximize performance & lifespan!
Quality lithium batteries are typically priced significantly higher than AGM batteries and quality AGM batteries are typically priced significantly higher than flooded lead-acid batteries, so it makes sense to assess your usage and determine which technology makes the most sense for you and your boat. Along with their premium price, lithium batteries offer a lot of positive features over the other technologies, but not all of that is relevant to every boater. Some examples of enhanced lithium features include more usable capacity, more cycle life, lighter weight and faster recharging time between cycles.
However, if you're on a liveaboard motor cruiser, lighter weight might not be a big selling point versus someone with a kayak, while more usable capacity could be very important. One of the biggest unmentioned selling points and most-common failure modes for flooded or AGM batteries is low voltage protection against deep discharges. Some lithium batteries, including OPTIMA ORANGETOP lithium batteries will automatically turn off and prevent the type of deep discharge scenarios that cause sulfation and shorten the lifespan of lead-acid batteries. Let's take a look at each of these three technologies and when they might make the most sense for you and your boat:
The Case for Flooded Lead-Acid Batteries
We'll be the first to tell you if your boat only cost $500, the most affordable flooded-lead-acid batteries you can find are probably the right choice. The same would be true if you were preparing your boat for sale. You could spend the extra money to outfit it with AGM or lithium batteries, but you probably wouldn't recoup that cost when you sell the boat. In the lithium battery space, a lot of attention seems to be focused on battery cycle life, but is that a factor that is relevant for your boat and how you use it? If you only take your boat out a few times a year and don't discharge your batteries a lot when you do boat, flooded lead-acid batteries may make the most sense.
The Case for AGM Batteries
The more you use your boat and the more deeply you cycle your batteries, the more sense AGM batteries, like OPTIMA's BLUETOP Batteries, will make. If you use your boat regularly and are replacing your flooded lead-acid batteries every year or perhaps more often, AGM batteries like the BLUETOP may make a lot of sense. OPTIMA advertises that our BLUETOP AGM batteries will last up to three times as long as a flooded lead-acid battery and you won't be spending three times as much to buy them. When you run the numbers for your boat, it should become obvious when you'll save money by upgrading to an AGM battery that lasts longer. AGM and lithium batteries will also offer higher voltage over the discharge range, which can help sensitive electronics function better, even at a lower state of charge.
The Case for Lithium Batteries
We've watched as some lithium battery brands have promoted cycle life measured well into the thousands of cycles, some even claiming their batteries will deliver "up to 15,000 deep cycles." It almost seems as if promoting cycle life is the new "Cold Cranking Amps" marketing tool for lithium batteries, where everyone wants to promote a bigger number, believing bigger is always better. Just running simple numbers, if you cycle your lithium battery every day, it will take you more than 41 years to reach 15,000 cycles. Do you even plan on keeping your boat for 41 years, let alone being on it every day and cycling the battery that much?
What many of these lithium brands may not tell you (or they may not even know) is that lithium batteries do degrade over time, so it's highly unlikely a lithium battery will last long enough to deliver a cycle every day for 41 straight years. The truth is a lithium battery may not even last half that long and whenever a "15,000 deep cycle" lithium battery does stop working, it is unlikely the claimed cycle life will have been exhausted. However, the warranty coverage will likely be exhausted, because while some brands make those cycle life claims, their warranty terms are generally tied to a timeframe, which quickly moves into pro-ration, meaning you will be paying the battery company to replace your battery (OPTIMA's lithium warranty is five years, free replacement).
So does a lithium battery make sense for anyone? Absolutely! OPTIMA's sponsored tournament anglers and professional fishing guides may be on the water 200 days or more per year, but even they are unlikely to ever reach 15,000 deep cycles with their batteries. While they may not reach that mark, they are likely to cycle their batteries more deeply and well beyond the lifespan of AGM batteries within a few years time. The same could be true for people who live aboard their boats and spend much of the year at sea or not connected to shore power. For people in those situations, upgrading to lithium batteries makes a lot of sense.
Lithium batteries like OPTIMA's ORANGETOP batteries also offer features not typically found in AGM or flooded lead-acid batteries, like NMEA 2000 connectivity, the low voltage protection we previously mentioned, a BlueTooth app that provides battery and charging information on your phone, interbattery communication, integrated cell heaters and more. We can alert you to these features and benefits, but only you can decide if they are an important purchase consideration.
Conclusion
Before you spend the most or the least amount of money possible on batteries for your boat, make sure you identify how you expect to use them and choose the technology that makes the most sense for you! Whatever battery technology you do choose, make sure you keep those batteries properly maintained with a quality battery maintenance device to maximize performance & lifespan!